


A little organized, a little disorganized

by funnyhowthatis



Category: For the People (TV 2018)
Genre: F/F, Takes place during 2x05, aka the gay/bi panic episode, just snippets, you can't convince me that that wasn't a full episode of them being entirely flustered by each other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-22
Updated: 2019-04-22
Packaged: 2020-01-23 20:33:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 992
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18557338
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/funnyhowthatis/pseuds/funnyhowthatis
Summary: Kate and Sandra find it hard to focus and can't help but notice how they're affecting each other's work.





	A little organized, a little disorganized

**Author's Note:**

> This is set during the events of 2x05, with some headcanon-y flashbacks to 2x04. It's just a little snippet of what I imagine was going through their heads as they were both clearly flustered that entire episode.

It was a feeling as if she had to run, a rush behind her ears, her mind spinning. The adrenaline of a good case, but without the focus. She found herself flipping through the stack of papers on her desk and, with the reminder of a quiet strength next to her and the feeling of her heart pounding, she stood up. It was all too much. She flipped through with purpose now - cut this, cut that. Into the bin. Or, even more uncharacteristic, into a carefully labeled folder. She picked up the set of post-its, put it back down, picked it up again. She moved it to different places on her desk, feeling the rushing crawl up again.

She found herself imagining Kate seeing her desk now, tidied. How there might be a small hint of a smile on her lips when she saw the few stacks of papers stacked haphazardly. 

She remembered how they had parted ways at the resort.

_ “So, professional?” _

_ A sharp breath in. “Professional.” _

_ Kate had extended her hand. “Shake on it?” _

_ Sandra smiled, and took Kate’s hand, shook on it. “I hope we can work together more often.” _

_ “You’ll have to prove it’s worth my time, though.” _

_ “Oh, I will.” _

_ “I know.” _

_ Suddenly very aware of their still entwined hands, Kate pulled back.  _

_ “I should get going. But,” she paused, deliberating, “I hope so, too, Sandra.” _

Nothing had happened, nothing had happened. And yet here she was, cleaning and organizing her desk.

\---

Why did her caseload feel so messy? How had she let this happen? Kate shook her head. This was her own doing. She had been the one to so emphatically say it:  _ yes. _ Yes, she would take on this case,  _ Sandra’s  _ case. This would have been fine, if she could have maintained her cool head through it all. But Sandra’s fire was contagious, the humanity she brought to her practice of law, it was infectious. Kate found herself engaging with the clients in a way she normally avoided, preparing the case in a way she normally wouldn’t. She wanted this. She wanted this kind of intellectual back and forth with someone so brilliant and so willing to challenge her. The possibilities of what she and Sandra could do together were electrifying. And then, feeling so confident in the courtroom, feeling so  _ good _ knowing Sandra was watching and that they were in this together - 

She slipped up. A trip over an unforeseen crack in the pavement, a detail she hadn’t prepared for.

This was her fault. This was Sandra’s fault. No, this was her fault for wanting nothing more than win this for Sandra. No, that wasn’t why she had taken this case, no, she told herself, that was not why she had taken this case.

_ They were sitting at the hotel bar, already several drinks in. Sandra had just jokingly shoved Kate’s arm, but then her hand stayed there, tracing downwards until her fingers found Kate’s, resting in her lap. Not dropping one another’s gaze, their fingers intertwined. It felt natural. What could have been more natural than this? Kate squeezed Sandra’s hand gently. She so badly wanted to - no. No, she told herself. Not again. She did not need to complicate yet another work relationship. First Anya, then Leonard, no. She did not want to do this to Sandra. And, more selfishly, she did not want that kind of complication between them.  _

_ Kate allowed herself that one evening, to let herself smile openly, to enjoy the feeling of a blush spreading across her face when Sandra reached over and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. She had let her hand rest on Sandra’s knee, had let it shift upwards. _

_ But as they walked out to the street to catch cabs, shoulders and arms and fingers grazing as they walked, reality started sinking in. _

_ “I can’t do -” _

_ “Of course.” _

_ “It’s just really not a good idea -” _

_ “We both need to focus on -” _

_ “So, professional?” _

But here Kate was in the hallway of the courthouse, her feelings entirely out of check, unable to be compartmentalized, unable to be organized.

\---

Normally, the night before closing, Sandra would channel any anxious energy into preparations. In so doing, the anxious energy became drive, momentum, not nervousness but determination. But this was before her own closings. Now, she found herself cracking eggs and then having to pick out eggshells, trying to bake, unable to stop thinking about their, no, about Kate’s case. Her momentum, her concentrated energy, was spilling over. She couldn’t shake the feeling of wanting to spend the whole night with Kate, helping her prepare, talking through whatever she might be thinking. She couldn’t shake the feeling that they should be going through this together.

She felt off balance, she  _ knew _ she was off balance, with her friends questioning everything from her cleaning to her tragic attempts of baking.

She didn’t sleep well that night, but at the start of Kate’s closing she began to feel grounded. Grounded in Kate’s words, the strength of her voice and of her conviction. 

And when the jury gave their verdict, and when families rushed to her thank her, Sandra felt a wave of relief come pouring out, a small sense of peace, for the children, for the families, for justice, and yes, for Kate.

Kate had hung back, and Sandra didn’t even question the thought Kate was waiting specifically for her. Sandra walked over to her and it seemed unquestionable that they would fall into an embrace. They both breathed out a sign of relief, a release of tension. Pulling away slightly, still holding one another’s arms, they each finally felt more balanced. There was no denying it now, they were better together.

“We made it through,” Sandra offered as they stepped outside the courthouse.

“We?”

“I know it was just you up there, but -”

“No, you were right.”

Sandra looked over.

“We do make a very good team.”


End file.
